Hi Everyone.  I have read through the postings and info pages here on the site about the health care system in Sain and my head is in a whirl!  I just wanted it broken down for me really simply so I know exactly what process to follow when I arrive. 

Here is my situation…
I am 36 and a dual EU-Canadian citizen but have never lived in Europe or paid into any social system.  I am also a US permanent resident as I am married to a 26 year old American woman.  We are planning to leave the States behind where we are currently living and explore the possibility of living in Spain.  Neither one of us has very much money to our names, but we want to give it a shot.  To ease the transition, we hope to volunteer on WWOOF organic farms until we find an area we are comfortable with and I can find a job teaching English (I have some experience and credentials to do this).  My concern has to do with access to health care in Spain.  We are both healthy individuals but coming from Canada where health care is universal, it has been a shock to me to have to deal with the system here in the United States! It’s horrific!

Here is what I understand from available resources:
First, I register with the local police dept, and having done that, apply for residencia for my wife at the same dept.

Second, since I do not plan to work right away or plan to go self-employed, I am assuming that I cannot apply for a social security number (although I have seen some talk here and there that it would be possible to get one without employment).  So what can I do in the meantime to ease our minds in case there is a medical emergency and we need treatment.  I just hate the thought of being saddled with thousands of euros of medical debt (as could easily happen in the States).  I have come across info here on the site about obtaining the local empadronado which would then enable us to get the local health card.  Can we still receive this if neither of us are employed at that point (just volunteering?)

I have looked into a private insurance option through the wwoof organization but I would prefer to not have to pay for this if not necessary.  I have seen postings in the forum where people allude to the fact they have private health insurance on top of their public benefits.  Why would they do that? What is the rationale?

What would you suggest?  Basically, please keep it simple for me and let me know the step by step process we need to go through to thoroughly enjoy our time in Spain and not have to worry about this!  Any help is much appreciated for all us dummies out there! 😊